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Famous five take Uruguay to brink of Copa quarters

Uruguay thrashed tournament minnows Bolivia 5-0 in their Group C encounter in New Jersey to all but book their place in the Copa America quarter-finals.

Facundo Pellistri nodded home the opener in the eighth minute and Darwin Nunez doubled Uruguay's lead just after the 20-minute mark, powering a left-footed shot past Bolivia keeper Guillermo Vizcarra to score in his seventh consecutive international match.

Maximiliano Araujo struck from close range to kill off the contest in the 77th minute, before Federico Valverde made it 4-0 four minutes later.

Substitute Rodrigo Bentancur completed the rout by heading home the fifth in the 89th minute.

Uruguay will progress as group winners if they avoid defeat by the United States in their final group game on Monday (Tuesday AEST), but even defeat would probably see them go through thanks to their superior goal difference.

Bolivia, who have lost both games so far, have only a slim mathematical chance of avoiding a group-stage exit for the fourth time in a row.

On a night when Nunez scored his 13th international goal, Uruguay's all-time leading scorer Luis Suarez was brought on as a late substitute and was immediately handed the captain's armband.

Nunez had already missed one quality chance before Pellistri found the net in the eighth minute from a well-worked set piece.

Nunez doubled Uruguay's advantage when he finished instinctively over the charging Viscarra's right shoulder and inside the near post.

Araujo added a third after getting on the end of Nicolas de la Cruz's through ball, before Uruguay scored twice more in the closing stages.

Panama's Jose Fajardo.
Panama's Jose Fajardo scored the winner as his side beat the United States 2-1 in Atlanta. (AP PHOTO)

In the earlier game in Atlanta, Panama struck late to beat the United States 2-1 in their Group C match, after the hosts were forced to play most of the match with 10 men.

US defender Timothy Weah was sent off in the 18th minute for lashing out at Roderick Miller, but Folarin Balogun gave the hosts the lead with a strike from just outside the box four minutes later.

Panama equalised in the 26th minute, when Cesar Blackman beat Matt Turner to the keeper's right with a low shot from the top of the box.

Substitute Jose Fajardo smashed home Abdiel Ayarza's cross in the 83rd minute to secure the win.

Panama were also reduced to 10 men after Adalberto Carrasquilla was sent off in the 88th minute for a crunching tackle on Christian Pulisic.

It was a costly night all around for the hosts, with goalkeeper Turner substituted at halftime with a leg injury after a collision with Panamanian defender Cesar Blackman in the 12th minute.

Weah was sent off after a video review showed he had shoved Roderick Miller in the back of the head away from the ball.

After Weah's dismissal, Balogun delighted the crowd with a splendid strike from 17 yards to give the hosts the lead in the 22nd minute. However, the joy was short-lived as Blackman equalised from the edge of the box four minutes later.

Ethan Horvath replaced the injured Turner in the US goal at the break and nearly faced a penalty in the 64th minute, but the call against US defender Cameron Carter-Vickers was overturned by video review.

The US thought they had taken the lead through Weston McKennie, but the goal was disallowed on review because Tim Ream was offside.

Their best opportunity in the second half came in the 81st minute when a header by Ricardo Pepi was saved by Panama goalkeeper Orlando Mosquera.

Panama scored the winning goal when substitute Fajardo smashed home Abdiel Ayarza's cross.